Cost Estimates

A new feature has been added to the Work Management System to replace the paper process for cost estimates. This new feature will store the estimate as a document of the project that is associated with the customer's work order. Cost estimates will function similar to other project documents (e.g., Impacts of Change). Customers will be able to search on the new cost estimate document type.

There are three types of cost estimates:

Budget

Planning

After-Analysis

Budget Cost Estimates

A customer will submit a Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request to ITD requesting a budget cost estimate.

ITD will create and submit the budget cost estimate as a project document within the Work Management System. ITD will complete the service request. The customer will receive an email notification that the cost estimate is 'Assigned' to them.

The customer will have 90 days to act on the budget cost estimate, after which it will be automatically Voided.

The customer will select the budget cost estimate from their Work Queue. The customer will have the option to Approve or Not Approve the budget cost estimate.

If the customer selects Approve:

The customer will be taken to a new page "Cost Estimate - New Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA Service Request":

If the customer selects Cancel:

No action will be done. The budget cost estimate status will remain in Approval Pending status.

If the customer selects Submit:

The budget cost estimate status will be changed to Approved.

A second Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request will automatically be created under the selected work order. (This is a situation where two Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service requests will be allowed for one work order.)

If the customer selects Not Approve:

The budget cost estimate status will be changed to Not Approved.

If the project does not have any unresolved documents, the project will automatically be closed.

Planning and After-Analysis Cost Estimates

ITD will create and submit the planning or after-analysis cost estimate as part of the project documentation within the Work Management System. The customer will receive an email notification that the cost estimate is 'Assigned' to them.

Planning and After-Analysis cost estimates will not have a 90 day limit.

The customer will select the cost estimate from their Work Queue. The customer will have the option to Approve or Not Approve the planning or after-analysis cost estimate.

If the customer selects Approve:

The planning or after-analysis cost estimate status will be changed to Approved.

ITD will proceed with the project.

If the customer selects Not Approve:

The planning or after-analysis cost estimate status will be changed to Not Approved.

ITD will complete the project and service request.

ITD Users:

A new feature has been added to the Work Management System to replace the paper process for cost estimates. This new feature will store the estimate as a document of the project that is associated with the customer's work order. Cost estimates will be added, changed, deleted, approved, etc, similar to other project documents (e.g., Impacts of Change). Customers will be able to search on the new cost estimate documents.

Features/Benefits

Cost estimates will be stored online in one location (WMS).

Users will be able to search on all cost estimates.

The cost estimate approval process will be online and include both Manager and Department approvals.

When a budget cost estimate is approved, a second Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request will be generated under the existing Work Order.

A category column has been added to the tasks/phases page within the WMS. This new field will provide the tie between the cost estimate worksheet areas and the historical database.

Team Leaders will not have to go into each task to update task hours from a Planning or After- Analysis cost estimate; they can update them all through one link.

Note: The cost estimates will be completed using the current forms, which include both the the word document and excel spreadsheet. Both of these will be added as attachments into the online cost estimate. The word document will be added in the area that is available for the customer and ITD to see, the excel spreadsheet will be added as an internal document into the area that is available for only ITD to see.

There are three types of cost estimates:

Budget

Planning

After-Analysis

Budget Cost Estimates

The Customer will submit a Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request to ITD.

The Team Leader will:

Add Service Area(s) and Task(s).

Original hours for the Task(s) will be entered using the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link.

If there are additional tasks not on the default list, new Tasks will be added by selecting the Add Task Item link. A related category will be selected for any new tasks to relate them back to the core tasks from the cost estimate form.

On the Task page, the "Change Reason" in the task history will contain "Original".

Add an assignment to the Developer.

The Developer will receive an email notice from the Manager of their new assignment. The Developer will:

Create a project related to the customer's work order and service request. The Customer will be added to the project team.

Create worksheets (word document and excel spreadsheet).

Add a cost estimate to the project.

The Manager and Customer (assignee) radio buttons will be selected, and the notification list will be set.

Attachments will be added. The Word document will be an external attachment viewable by both the Customer and ITD. The Excel spreadsheet will be an internal attachment viewable only by ITD.

Submit the budget cost estimate.

The cost estimate status will be changed to 'Manager Approval Pending'.

An email notice will be sent from the Developer to the Manager.

The Manager will receive an email notice from the Developer that the budget cost estimate is ready for review. The Manager will have two buttons available:

If the Manager selects Return:

The budget cost estimate status will be changed to 'Returned'.

An email notice will be sent from the Manager to the Developer. This process could happen multiple times until the Manager approves the cost estimate.

If the Manager selects Approve:

The budget cost estimate status will be changed to 'Approval Pending'.

Email notices will be sent from the Manager to the Developer, from the Manager to the Customer, and from the Manager to all on the notification list.

The Developer will receive an email notice from the Manager:

If the Manager Returned the budget cost estimate:

The budget cost estimate status will have been changed to 'Returned'.

The developer will revise the cost estimate attachments and resubmit the cost estimate back to the Manager. This process will repeat until the Manager approves the cost estimate.

If the Manager Approved the budget cost estimate:

The budget cost estimate status will have been changed to 'Approval Pending'.

The developer will complete the assignment and service request. The project will not be closed. WMS will start the clock to void the budget cost estimate after 90 days.

Budget cost estimates will have a 90 day limit.

The Customer will receive an email notice from the Manager that the budget cost estimate has been 'Assigned' to them. The Customer will select the cost estimate from their Work Queue. The Customer will have two buttons available.

If the Customer selects Approve:

The page "Cost Estimate - New Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA Service Request" will be displayed.

If the Customer selects Cancel, no action will be taken. The budget cost estimate status will remain 'Approval Pending'.

If the Customer selects Submit: 1) The budget cost estimate status will be changed to 'Approved', 2) A second Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request will be created under the selected work order. This is a situation where two Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service requests will be allowed for one work order, 3) No email notices will be sent.

If the person that clicked 'Approve' and 'Submit' was not the Customer (i.e., cost estimate assignee), the second Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request will be created with the Non-assignee as the requestor. An email notice will not be sent from the Non-assignee to the Customer so they know the cost estimate was "Approved" on their behalf.

If the Customer selects Not Approved:

The budget cost estimate status will be changed to 'Not Approved'.

If the person that clicked 'Not Approve' was not the Customer (i.e., cost estimate assignee), an email notice will be sent from the Non-assignee to the Customer so they know the cost estimate was "Not Approved" on their behalf.

If the project does not have any unresolved documents, the project will be closed automatically.

Budget cost estimates are valid for 90 days. If the customer does not act on the budget cost estimate within 90 days:

The status will be automatically changed to "Void" via a weekday backend system process.

If the project does not have any unresolved documents, the project will be closed automatically.

An email notice will be sent from the Manager to the Customer.

Planning Cost Estimates

The Customer will submit a Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request to ITD.

The Team Leader will:

Add Service Area(s) and Task(s).

Original hours for the Task(s) will be entered using the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link.

If there are additional tasks not on the default list, new Tasks will be added by selecting the Add Task Item link. A related category will be selected for any new tasks to relate them back to the core tasks from the cost estimate form.

On the Task page, the "Change Reason" in the task history will contain "Original".

Add an assignment to the Developer.

The Developer will receive an email notice from the Manager of their new assignment. The Developer will:

Create a project related to the customer's work order and service request. The customer will be added to the project team.

Create worksheets (word document and excel spreadsheet).

Add a cost estimate to the project.

The Manager and Customer (assignee) radio buttons will be selected, and the notification list will be set.

Attachments will be added. The Word document will be an external attachment viewable by both the Customer and ITD. The Excel spreadsheet will be an internal attachment viewable only by ITD.

Submit the planning cost estimate.

The cost estimate status will be changed to 'Manager Approval Pending'.

An email notice will be sent from the Developer to the Manager.

The Manager will receive an email notice from the Developer that the planning cost estimate is ready for review. The Manager will have two buttons available:

If the Manager selects Return:

The planning cost estimate status will be changed to 'Returned'.

An email notice will be sent from the Manager to the Developer. This process could happen multiple times until the Manager approves the cost estimate.

If the Manager selects Approve:

The planning cost estimate status will be changed to 'Approval Pending'.

Email notices will be sent from the Manager to the Developer, from the Manager to the Customer, and from the Manager to all on the notification list.

The Developer will receive an email notice from the Manager:

If the Manager Returned the planning cost estimate:

The planning cost estimate status will have been changed to 'Returned'.

The developer will revise the cost estimate attachments and resubmit the cost estimate back to the Manager. This process will repeat until the Manager approves the cost estimate.

If the Manager Approved the planning cost estimate:

The planning cost estimate status will have been changed to 'Approval Pending'.

The developer will wait for an action by the Customer.

Planning cost estimates will not have a 90 day limit.

The Customer will receive an email notice from the Manager that the planning cost estimate has been 'Assigned' to them. The Customer will select the cost estimate from their Work Queue. The Customer will have two buttons available:

If the Customer selects Approve:

The planning cost estimate status will be changed to 'Approved'.

If the person that clicked 'Approve' was not the Customer (i.e., cost estimate assignee), an email notice will be sent from the Non-assignee to the Customer so they know the cost estimate was "Approved" on their behalf.

An email notice will be sent from the Customer (or Non-Assignee) to the Developer.

The Developer will continue working on the project.

The Team Leader will update the hours for the Tasks by clicking on the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link for each Service Area and updating the applicable hours. These will be the hours from the planning cost estimate internal attachment excel spreadsheet. On the Task page, the "Change Reason" in the task history will contain "Original".

If the Customer selects Not Approved:

The planning cost estimate status will be changed to 'Not Approved'.

If the person that clicked 'Not Approve' was not the Customer (i.e., cost estimate assignee), an email notice will be sent from the Non-assignee to the Customer so they know the cost estimate was "Not Approved" on their behalf.

An email notice will be sent from the Customer (or Non-Assignee) to the Developer.

The Developer will stop working on the project.

The Developer will close the project, assignment, and service request.

After-Analysis Cost Estimates

The Customer will submit a Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service request to ITD.

The Team Leader will:

Add Service Area(s) and Task(s).

Original hours for the Task(s) will be entered using the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link.

If there are additional tasks not on the default list, new Tasks will be added by selecting the Add Task Item link. A related category will be selected for any new tasks to relate them back to the core tasks from the cost estimate form.

On the Task page, the "Change Reason" in the task history will contain "Original".

Add an assignment to the Developer.

The Developer will receive an email notice from the Manager that an assignment has been made to them. The Developer will:

Create a project related to the customer's work order and service request. The customer will be added to the project team.

Create worksheets (word document and excel spreadsheet).

Add a cost estimate to the project.

The Manager and Customer (assignee) radio buttons will be selected, and the notification list will be set.

Attachments will be added. The Word document will be an external attachment viewable by both the Customer and ITD. The Excel spreadsheet will be an internal attachment viewable only by ITD.

Submit the after-analysis cost estimate.

The cost estimate status will be changed to 'Manager Approval Pending'.

An email notice will be sent from the Developer to the Manager.

The Manager will receive an email notice from the Developer that the after-analysis cost estimate is ready for review. The Manager will have two buttons available:

If the Manager selects Return:

The after-analysis cost estimate status will be changed to 'Returned'.

An email notice will be sent from the Manager to the Developer. This process could happen multiple times until the Manager approves the cost estimate.

If the Manager selects Approve:

The after-analysis cost estimate status will be changed to 'Approval Pending'.

Email notices will be sent from the Manager to the Developer, from the Manager to the Customer, and from the Manager to all on the notification list.

The Developer will receive an email notice from the Manager:

If the Manager Returned the after-analysis cost estimate:

The after-analysis cost estimate status will have been changed to 'Returned'.

The developer will revise the cost estimate attachments and resubmit the cost estimate back to the Manager. This process will repeat until the Manager approves the cost estimate.

If the Manager Approved the after-analysis cost estimate:

The after-analysis cost estimate status will have been changed to 'Approval Pending'.

The developer will wait for an action by the Customer.

After-analysis cost estimates will not have a 90 day limit.

The Customer will receive an email notice from the Manager that the after-analysis cost estimate has been 'Assigned' to them. The Customer will select the cost estimate from their Work Queue. The Customer will have two buttons available:

If the Customer selects Approve:

The after-analysis cost estimate status will be changed to 'Approved'.

If the person that clicked 'Approve' was not the Customer (i.e., cost estimate assignee), an email notice will be sent from the Non-assignee to the Customer so they know the cost estimate was "Approved" on their behalf.

An email notice will be sent from the Customer (or Non-Assignee) to the Developer.

The Developer will continue working on the project.

The Team Leader will update the hours for the Tasks by clicking on the "Estimate After Analysis Task Hours" link for each Service Area and updating the applicable hours. These will be the hours from the after-analysis cost estimate internal attachment excel spreadsheet. On the Task page, the "Change Reason" in the task history will contain "After Analysis".

If the Customer selects Not Approved:

The after-analysis cost estimate status will be changed to 'Not Approved'.

If the person that clicked 'Not Approve' was not the Customer (i.e., cost estimate assignee), an email notice will be sent from the Non-assignee to the Customer so they know the cost estimate was "Not Approved" on their behalf.

An email notice will be sent from the Customer (or Non-Assignee) to the Developer.

The Developer will stop working on the project.

The Developer will close the project, assignment, and service request.

Historical Database

A Historical Database feature has also been added to the Work Management System. This feature will store and evaluate historical cost estimate information from previous software development projects, to assist in future cost estimates.

Features/Benefits

ITD Management users will be able to generate a report of historical cost estimate information from previous software development projects.

A new indicator "Include in Historical Database" will be displayed on Software Dev/GIS/PM/QA service requests. WMS will default the indicator to the correct value; it should only be altered by the PMO and managers.

For Team Leaders: Individual tasks shouldn't be edited until all cost estimate hours have been entered via the "Estimate Original Task Hours" and "Estimate After Analysis Task Hours" links. Please note the following rules per service area:

Once Original Hours have been entered, then both the "Estimate After Analysis Task Hours" link and Individual Task links can be selected.

The "Estimate Original Task Hours" link can be selected many times and one or more task hours updated each time; the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link will continue to be displayed.

If Original hours have been entered and an Individual Task is changed, the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link will disappear.

If Original hours have been entered and the "Estimate After Analysis Task Hours" link is used to update tasks hours, the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link will disappear. Even if just one of the tasks in the service area was updated with After-Analysis task Hours, the "Estimate Original Task Hours" link disappears.

The "Estimate After-Analysis Task Hours" link can be selected many times and one or more task hours updated each time; the "Estimate After Analysis Task Hours" link will continue to be displayed.

If After-Analysis hours have been entered and an Individual Task is changed, the "Estimate After Analysis Task Hours" link will disappear.

If an Individual Task is changed, the "Change Reason" in the task history will contain "Impact of Change".

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